L o v e
by Grayshadow Warrior
Summary: Love: the subject that has puzzled the world since its very beginning. Can we ever truly define it, or are we cursed—blessed?—to watch as it takes place around us? / Dedicated to members of The Great Clans forum and their pairings. Book of Valentine's Day one-shots. New chapter every time Gray gets romantic inspiration.
1. Icepebble

**For Castle and Eclipse:**

**true love can survive through the trials of jealousy and time**

**only then will it be considered real**

Pebblepaw opened his jaws in a gaping yawn, blinking his eyes open. Claypaw snores softly beside him, flank rising and falling steadily. Maybe he would have time for another nest prank on her later during the day, but a call from Icepaw dragged his mind away from it.

"Pebblepaw! Guess what?"

Pebblepaw drew his gaze toward the den entrance. Ah, there she was. Might as well get up now. Stretching, he approached her sleepily, shaking his head to wake himself up.

"Nightspark said I passed my assessment! I'm going to become a warrior once the sun begins to set!" Icepaw's tone was a different kind of peppy, not like the usual. Purrs played throughout her shouts of excitement, which brought Pebblepaw to his full consciousness.

"Really? A warrior? What name do you think you'll get?"

"Well, I was hoping for 'heart,' but I think everyone does. 'Ear,' maybe," she gestured to her silvery ear, "or perhaps 'leaf.' I always thought that was pretty."

"Whatever you get, I'll be happy for you," replied Pebblepaw sincerely, with a hint of envy. She already got to think about warrior names, and where was he? Cleaning out the dens still. She'd be too far ahead of him, and they'd never be friends again!

_That's not true_, he thought, shaking away the thought. But Icepaw was already continuing her joyful chatter.

"I was thinking we could head out—with permission, of course—on a celebratory walk. Maybe Antpaw could come along, too. He's going to be at the ceremony too."

Antpaw? With a stab of jealousy he recalled how the ginger apprentice gazed at Icepaw just as he did himself. Why did _he _have to go? The thoughts came more rapidly now. What if, once the two were warriors, Antpaw and Icepaw became mates? Who did that leave Pebblepaw with—Goldkit?

"Let's go right now!"

Pebblepaw snapped to attention. "Yeah, of course!"

Antpaw was just off near the entrance, hiding his head a little by bending over. He seemed a little… lonely. This made Pebblepaw completely rethink his worried ponderings before.

Icepaw, followed closely by Pebblepaw, trotted over to Antpaw brightly. She called to him, making his head raise, features immediately brightening. "Icepaw!"

"Hi, Antpaw. Want to come with Pebblepaw and I on a walk? We're going to ask if we can go out together."

"S-sure!" Pleasantly surprised, the apprentice came to join the pair. After asking Scareye, who was confidently standing nearby and sorting out patrols, the group headed out into the hills.

Pebblepaw instinctively advanced closer to Icepaw, still a little unsure of Antpaw's coming along. But Antpaw didn't seem bothered.

"Let's go by the river. Maybe we'll run into some prey!" Antpaw started off, a few fox-lengths ahead of Icepaw and Pebblepaw. With their friend ahead, a silence came between them. Pebblepaw had a yearning to tell Icepaw, well, everything.

It was like a maze of nettles to Pebblepaw. Each step threatened a sharp sting, and every passage seemed to have an end. "What do you think about Antpaw?"

It was a start, at least; a cautious pad forward. Icepaw seemed caught off guard, though, making Pebblepaw feel as if he had said the wrong thing.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, just—what do you think about him?"

Icepaw paused a moment, blue eyes narrowing in thought. "Well, he's nice. Kind of shy. I feel sorry for him, but he's a good friend."

_Friend! _Pebblepaw held in a sigh of relief. Thank StarClan! And this was his chance! Taking in a long breath of air, the blue-gray apprentice started to confess. "Icepaw, I—"

"Hey, guys, look at the river!" Antpaw interrupted, beckoning the two with his tail. Pebblepaw didn't pay attention to what was so special about the water—he was too busy thinking over what he had almost said. As the three changed course for camp, Pebblepaw decided he would explain to Icepaw his feelings before her vigil.

It was already sun-high. Only another half of the day and maybe, just maybe, Icepaw would say she felt the same, even if they had to wait another moon to become official mates. The thought made the young tom brighten.

The day seemed to pass slower than most, riddled with little thoughts of rejection and insecurities, but filled with hope. How did he describe how Icepaw made him feel warm and bright inside? How he thought it'd be nice if they spent more time together?

Pebblepaw paced aimlessly around the camp, which caught a couple of strange looks. The apprentice wasn't usually so distant or worrisome. Most cats saw him as smug, mischievous.

It was only when the cry of "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Peak Stone for a Clam meeting" did Pebblepaw look up. Heart racing, he settled beside the tall stone, gaze set upon Icepaw.

"The time has come to announce new warriors. Icepaw, Antpaw, please come forward."

She approached her leader pridefully, sleek from grooming and more beautiful then ever, or so Pebblepaw thought. Antpaw followed after, seeming a little timid at retrieving so much attention—but he didn't matter. Only Icepaw.

"Both Fernwhisker and Nightspark believe that you are ready. I, Sprintstar, leader of RockClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in their turn." Sprintstar looked down upon the two apprentices, settling on Icepaw first. "Icepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." She nodded, fast enough to appear a little blurry.

"Then I hereby name you Iceshard. May your foes feel the pain of your claws, as well as your wit."

_Iceshard. _The name felt nice in Pebblepaw's mind, and he was almost bursting with more pride for Iceshard than the new warrior herself. He didn't pay much mind to the rest of the ceremony, focus locked on Iceshard, though he did know that Antpaw came to be known as Antcrest.

Stepping forward to congratulate them, he nodded to the side to hint he wanted to speak to Iceshard. She gave him a questioning look, but followed to him to the entrance.

Pebblepaw had everything planned. He had a set dialogue, multiple responses to her reactions, and an escape if rejected. But once he opened his mouth, everything went spiraling out of control. "Icepaw—I mean, Iceshard—I have something to tell you.

"For a while now, I've watched you—not in the creepy way—and I think… I think I love you."

Pebblepaw wanted to slap himself for being so stupid. Why, all of a sudden, was he so clumsy with his words? He was never like this before!

But the intense sparkle in Iceshard's eyes that grew when he finished astonished him. "You feel the same way? I thought you'd move on, just like you always have. It worried me…"

"I thought you might love Antcrest until this morning! I was scared you'd both grow up without me, and I'd have to mentor your kits… watch you laugh together…"

Iceshard laid a paw on Pebblepaw's, staring him down until he looked up at her. "I'll wait for you. That's a promise."

And as the sun set, Pebblepaw sat the vigil with Antcrest and Iceshard, feeling more at peace than he ever had before in his life.

**This one-shot contains elements from the actual roleplay of the ceremony, so if any of you from TGC recognize them, you get a gold star.**

**When making Antcrest's crush on Iceshard when I joined the forum, I think at first I wanted I her to fall for him over Pebblepaw, but now, I think Pebble/Ice was meant to be. Besides, I think Antcrest would be better off with Claypaw anyway. But that's my own opinion :)**


	2. Sorrellightning

**For SJ**

**love doesn't always need words**

**even when one side blabbers their mouth off**

Lightningpaw shifted his weight impatiently, waiting for Lightstorm's lesson to be done. Pinepaw, Jewelpaw, and Dawnpaw were there as well, all seeming far more intrigued than Lightningpaw himself. Of course, he couldn't blame them—this lesson was particularly interesting, centered around different prey, their abilities and the best approach to catching them, but the apprentice had much better things to look forward to.

Gaze drifting toward the medicine den, he curled his tail tightly around his paws, trying as best he could to focus on that day's lecture (but failing terribly).

"Now, rabbits—Lightningpaw. Lightningpaw, are you even listening?" It took the apprentice in question a minute to process that Lightstorm was asking for his attention, but when he did, he snapped to attention, a little embarrassed.

"Yes, Lightstorm?"

Sighing exasperatedly and shaking his head, the deputy continued to teach the young apprentices, occasionally having to grab Lightningpaw's attention throughout it. By the end of it, Lightningpaw was about to burst, brightening when he thought he was dismissed.

"Alright. You kits did a good job listening. At least, _most _of you." While saying this, the tom shot a look straight at Lightningpaw, whom of which payed no attention to the glare. "Quick, Jewelpaw—how does a mouse sense you?"

"It uses its hearing and the vibrations in the ground," she answered almost immediately, beaming as Lightstorm nodded approvingly.

"Nice work. You obviously put a lot of effort into listening." The deputy turned to the tortoiseshell apprentice next to Jewelpaw, firing another question. "Pinepaw, what is decidedly the best way to catch a rabbit with the likeliest chance of succeeding?"

Pinepaw hesitated for a moment, but replied to the question with confidence. "It's best to do a double-team, because you can chase it in one direction while the other waits to catch it, or vice versa. In my experience, it'd be easier to hunt alone if the area was mostly closed off, so you could drive it into a corner."

"Good work tying experience into your answer! Dawnpaw, if I saw a crow pecking at the grass, how would it be best to approach it?"

"You could—I mean, maybe—but you could make sure to drop from a high point so it can't fly up to escape." Dawnpaw's uncertain expression changed to a pleasant one when Lightstorm bobbed his head.

"Creatively put, since we didn't go over that. I'll make sure to try it next time." He gave a reassuring wink before shifting his gaze toward the last apprentice. Lightningpaw"—Lightningpaw jumped when his name was mentioned, looking up at the tom cautiously—"where are voles most commonly found in LeafClan territory?"

"...Um, the fresh-kill pile?" Pinepaw, Dawnpaw and Jewelpaw burst out laughing at their fellow apprentice's response. Lightstorm silenced them with a glare, but he himself seemed disappointed in Lightningpaw's answer.

Lightstorm flicked his tail at the she-cats, signaling for them to leave. Lightningpaw's ears burned with embarrassment as he heard whispers and a bout of laughter coming from his sister and her friends, flattening them to his head.

Settling down, the older tom asked seriously but in a kind tone, "I've noticed your attentions have been drawn from the lesson. Would you care to explain to me why?"

Why? He didn't know _why_. All he knew was that he really, really, really wanted to go see Sorrelflight right then and there, so he shrugged, averting his eyes from Lightstorm's striking gaze.

Grunting, the deputy stood up, sensing he wasn't going to get much out of the apprentice. "I would advise you to focus more on what I'm teaching you than whatever else you're thinking about these days if you'd like to pass your assessments."

His assessments? Those were a few moons away still! ...Sorrelflight would be gone by then, wouldn't she? Lightningpaw's eyes widened at the thought. She was one of his best friends. He wouldn't be able to bear it! Pushing his conversation with Lightstorm and the shrill giggles of the other apprentices out of his mind, he hurried into Dustheart and Ashdapple's den, searching the inside for the RockClan she-cat.

"Lightningpaw? I thought I heard you out there." Sorrelflight raised her head off her paws where it had been resting, blinking up at him with those oh-so-gorgeous green eyes.

_She heard? _His ears felt like they were on fire now. She'd know he wasn't doing well in his apprenticeship.

"Are you okay?"

Lightningpaw ignored her question, shooting it back at her. "Are you alright? Is your paw healing? Your ribs?"

Sorrelflight smiled, but it looked more like a wince as she sat up to give Lightningpaw more space in the bitter-smelling, cramped den. "Dustheart and Ashdapple say it should be. It's more sore than ever."

"Are they treating you well?" he pressed, a little worried.

"Who, the medicine cats?" Sorrelflight chuckled. "You need to stop worrying yourself so much, Lightningpaw. Yes, they're treating me well. I'd be limp for life without them."

Just the thought of it made Lightningpaw cringe. To never be able to run again would be awful. "Okay, if you say so. I was just wondering."

He stayed there the rest of the day, earning a disapproving look from Dustheart and a polite but irritated request that the two relocate themselves elsewhere from Ashdapple. Come to think of it, they _had_ been taking up a lot of the space, and Lightningpaw had almost tripped Dustheart with his tail. Shrugging, he helped Ashdapple carry the patient outside of the den as the sky grew dark.

Stars were already beginning to wink down at the moonlit clearing, a slight sliver of the moon just visible beside Silverpelt. Lightningpaw glanced over at Sorrelflight in silence a few times before murmuring, "You know, um, Sorrelflight… Earlier today, Lightstorm was after me because I was unfocused, and he asked me why. I didn't know then, but I-I think I do now."

The she-cat gave him a curious look, staring at him for the first time since they had started to stargaze.

Lightningpaw took a deep breath, then let his words tumble out of his mouth like a stream. "I love you, and I think I have for a while, ever since we started to hang out when you came here, and I've always been thinking about you, and when I'm around you I feel warm and fuzzy inside, and I've always debated on whether—I don't know—I should twine our tails or say something, but now…"

He pulled out a sorrel leaf he had sneaked from the medicine den along with a small poppy, passing them to the she-cat he loved. The medicine cats wouldn't be happy once they noticed, but to Lightningpaw, it was worth it.

Sorrelflight hadn't yet responded. Worriedly, Lightningpaw nudged her, then sagged his shoulders. "I knew it. I shouldn't have said anything."

And taking him by surprise, Sorrelflight twirled her tail around his, looking as happy as he had ever seen her, and together the two watched the stars until the sky showed the first signs of dawn.

**So… when SJ and I decided how this relationship was going to work out, they suggested that we have Lightningpaw falling head over heels while Sorrelflight is the more unconscious liking kind of gal. And I have to say, it works. This has become my absolute favorite OC pairing, even though SJ and I kept inserting little things in our posts like "excuse me while I *barfs*". I love our little kitties anyway.**


End file.
